November 29, 1970

US plans major reduction of its forces in Japan, partly for budgetary reasons and partly to carry out Nixon's policy of reducing Amer mil involvement in Asia; Asahi Shimbun (Tokyo newspaper) details proposed changes including withdrawal of 54 Phantom jets and 18 reconnaissance planes based at Misawa, 54 others based near Tokyo, withdrawal of all Navy observation planes at Atsugi and the turning over to Japan of ship repair facilities at Yokosuka and Itasuke Air Force Base outside Fukuoka; says shifts will be completed by June, that US forces in Japan will be reduced by 12,000 men; Defense Agency Dir Nakasone says he was told in gen terms of US plans when he met with Sec Packard in Washington in Sept

Pope, in broadcast message to Asia from Manila, warns continent against what he terms militant and aggressive atheism; deplores 'situations of incomplete development or of unequal distribution'; calls for peaceful coexistence and correction of injustice; message follows condemnation of 'atheistic Communism' by pan-Asian bishops' conf, Manila, in motion sponsored by Nationalist Chinese Cardinal Yu Pin; Pope reptdly rewrote message after hard anti-Communist line emerged at conf but did not once use word 'Communism'

Leading participants in US raid to free Amer prisoners of war in N Vietnam are hon during halftime ceremonies

Soviet negotiators at SALT have reptdly informed US that they prefer a ltd antimissile system rather than none at all; Nixon Adm, which previously proposed the alternatives, sees Soviet move as step toward eventual agreement; Soviets have not responded to US proposal for limitation on total number of strategic missile systems and on Soviet SS-9s

Int; illus